HYDERABAD: A new era will dawn when India take on Bangladesh in a day-night Test at Eden Gardens starting from November 22. While the concept is not that new, it certainly will be a landmark moment for both the teams, as they remain the only Test-playing nations other than the two new full members — Afghanistan and Ireland — to not have played a five-day game under lights.
But it is not as if Indian players are alien to the new format, as BCCI had organised day-night Duleep Trophy matches for three seasons, from 2016-17 to 2018-19.
Considering the fact that day-night Test matches are played with pink balls, it is a big departure from the traditional format. This daily got in touch with a few cricketers who have the experience of playing with pink balls to learn how the matches could turn out to be. Most of them are quite sure that batsmen would reap benefits.
“It was a good experience to play under lights. It was a lot easier to bat because the pink ball does not swing as much as the red one. And even if it does, it is for just three to four overs under lights. So, it will be a struggle for fast bowlers. I even observed that spinners found the ball tough to grip,” Mumbai’s middle-order anchor, Siddhesh Lad said.
“To make the matches evenly balanced for both batsmen and bowlers, there should be a covering of 4mm to 6mm of grass on the pitches. Making rank turners will also help,” the 27-year-old added.
Vidarbha pacer Rajneesh Gurbani also feels that pitches will play a very big role in day-night Tests since there is not much help from pink balls. “When we played at Dindigul during the 2018-19 season, the pitch was conducive for batting. The Kolkata wicket must have something in it for the bowlers, otherwise only batsmen will have a field day,” the right-arm medium pacer said.
Players might be a bit sceptical about the format, but the statistics tell somewhat of a different story.
The average first-innings score from 2016-17 season onwards are 370, 295.75, and 321.87. On the other hand, there are players who are hopeful about the tweak.
“I think day-night Tests are a good idea. People would not have to wait for holidays to watch a match. They can simply finish their day’s work and head straight to the stadium. Children can finish school and do the same,” Hyderabad all-rounder Bavanaka Sandeep opined.
Ricky Bhui, who has been on the fringe for a couple of years, thoroughly enjoyed his experience of turning out under lights. “The ball swings only for a brief period and comes on to the bat easily. However, to balance things out, you need to have something in the pitch for the bowlers,” Bhui said.